Earlier this month, the Food and Drug Administration confirmed the presence of asbestos in three products manufactured by Claire’s and Justice, two retailers whose products target pre-teens and teenagers. The contamination was first reported in 2017 and the FDA has now released test results that confirm the asbestos, which has been linked to various cancers and serious respiratory issues.

Sleeplessness is a common malady of business leaders whose companies have had to undergo a product recall. When a recall hits home, how well a company prepares for and manages the recall requirements can mean the difference between preserving customer loyalty and severely damaging the brand reputation, or even worse…sink a business entirely. Anxiety levels spike throughout the company as leaders brace for bad publicity, lower earnings, lost market share, legal liability, or a host of other unwanted outcomes.

In October of 2018, the FDA released new draft guidance for the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) on how to meet its seven key rules for ensuring the safety of our food supply. A month later, the nation was hit with yet another major food-borne outbreak – E. coli-contaminated romaine lettuce that killed five and sickened hundreds of consumers across 36 states.

It’s no surprise that notifying consumers directly about product recalls is the most effective way to get dangerous products out of circulation. What is surprising is how much more effective direct notifications are, and why manufacturers and retailers don’t use them more often.
A study last year by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) found that recalls which employ direct notifications have a healthy response rate of about 50 percent.

In October, the FDA released new draft guidance for the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) on how to meet its seven key rules for ensuring the safety of our food supply. A month later, the nation was hit with yet another major food-borne outbreak – E. coli-contaminated romaine lettuce that killed five and sickened hundreds of consumers across 36 states.